Egypt Country Profile ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT OFFICE OF COMMERCIAL AFFAIRS, ROYAL THAI EMBASSY, CAIRO THAI TRADE CENTER 1 Thai Trade Center, Cairo ٍ Sherif Yehya Egypt Country Profile Background: The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C., and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty fell to the Persians in 341 B.C., who in turn were replaced by the Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines. It was the Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the 7th century and who ruled for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub, but also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty with the overthrow of the British- backed monarchy in 1952. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to meet the demands of Egypt's growing population through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure. Egyptian youth and opposition groups, inspired by events in Tunisia leading to overthrow of the government there, organized a "Day of Rage" campaign on 25 January 2011 (Police Day) to include non-violent demonstrations, marches, and labor strikes in Cairo and other cities throughout Egypt. Protester grievances focused on police brutality, state emergency laws, lack of free speech and elections, high unemployment, rising food prices, inflation, and low minimum wages. Within several days of the onset of protests, President MUBARAK addressed the nation pledging the formation of a new government, and in a second address he offered additional concessions, which failed to assuage protesters and resulted in an escalation of the number and intensity of demonstrations and clashes with police. On 11 February, recently appointed Vice President SULIMAN announced MUBARAK's resignation and the assumption of national leadership by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF). In a March 19, 2011 referendum, Egyptians voted overwhelmingly to amend Egypt’s constitution, thus setting the legal groundwork for democratic parliamentary and presidential elections. The referendum included amendments that set term limits for the president, affirmed judicial oversight of elections, and prevented the state of emergency from remaining in effect for longer than six months unless approved by a public referendum. It also provided for the establishment of a 100-member constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. In November 2011, Egyptians began voting in elections for Egypt’s People’s Assembly. 2 Thai Trade Center, Cairo ٍ Sherif Yehya Egypt Country Profile Basic Data Area: 1,001,450 sq. km Population: 82,079,636 (July 2011) Capital City: Cairo (population - 17 million) Other Cities: Alexandria (6 million), Aswan, Asyut, Port Said, Suez, Ismailia. Administrative Division: 27 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazat); Ad Daqahliyah, Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrah, Al Fayyum, Al Gharbiyah, Al Iskandariyah (Alexandria), Al Isma'iliyah (Ismailia), Al Jizah (Giza), Al Minufiyah, Al Minya, Al Qahirah (Cairo), Al Qalyubiyah, Al Uqsur (Luxor), Al Wadi al Jadid (New Valley), As Suways (Suez), Ash Sharqiyah, Aswan, Asyut, Bani Suwayf, Bur Sa'id (Port Said), Dumyat (Damietta), Janub Sina' (South Sinai), Kafr ash Shaykh, Matruh, Qina, Shamal Sina' (North Sinai), Suhaj People: Eastern Hamitic (Egyptians, Bedouins, and Berbers) (99%); Greek, Nubian, Armenian, other European (primarily Italian and French) (1%) Languages: Arabic (official), English widely understood, French Religion(s): Muslim (mostly Sunni) (90%), Coptic Christian (9%) and other (1%) Currency: 1 Egyptian Pound (LE) = 100 Piastres (PT) Location : Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula Land Boundaries: total: 2,665 km border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Israel 266 km, Libya 1,115 km, Sudan 1,273 km Terrain: Desert plateau, except Nile valley and delta. Climate: Dry, hot summers; moderate inters. Natural Resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, rare earth elements, zinc Major political parties: Freedom & Justice (Muslim Brotherhood), El Nour (Ultra conservative Salafists), Wafd Party and Tagammu Party (Liberal) Government Republic Head of State Field Marshall Tantawi (Head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, de facto ruler of Egypt since February 2011) and is slated to hand over that function to a new president once presidential elections are held, likely by June 30, 2012) Prime Minister/Premier: Kamal El Ghanzouri Foreign Minister: Dr Muhammad Kamel Amr Minister of Independence: 1922. Constitution 11 September 1971; amended 22 May 1980, 25 May 2005, and 26 March 2007; note - constitution suspended by the military caretaker government 13 February 2011 and a new provisional constitution adopted 30 March 2011 Cabinet People's Assembly (498 elected members and up to 10 presidentially appointed), and Shura (consultative) Council (180 elected members, and 90 presidentially appointed). The two houses of Egypt’s parliament—the People’s Assembly and the Shura Council—were dissolved in February 2011, but will be seated again in 2012 after elections are completed for each house. Membership of / ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, Participation in CICA, COMESA, D-8, EBRD, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, international IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, groups/organizations: IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, 3 Thai Trade Center, Cairo ٍ Sherif Yehya Egypt Country Profile MIGA, MINURSO, MONUSCO, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO Economy Overview The Egyptian economy has been suffering since the January 2011 revolution. The political uprising has had an impact on the macro-economy, leading to a severe reduction in confidence and investment outflows, as well as a drop in tourism revenues and foreign investment. The uprising and the continued political tensions throughout the year have created a number of economic vulnerabilities. Real growth, which had averaged over 6% in 2006- 2010, dropped to 1.8% in the financial year that ended in June 2011 and 0.3% year-on-year in July-September 2011. But Egypt needs to grow by at least 6% to absorb new entrants to the labour market. Poverty has also increased over the past two years. Egypt’s external position is fragile and the country depleted more than half of its net international reserves. The pace of reserve loss is unsustainable and the Central Bank of Egypt has been allowing the Egyptian pound to depreciate albeit slowly. Public finances are also under pressure. Populist measures taken post-revolution created burdens on the budget at a time when revenues were falling pushing the deficit up. Egypt’s short-term economic outlook is fraught with challenges: the lack of investments needed to create jobs, a wide fiscal deficit exacerbated by the increasing costs of financing the deficit, a weakening external account, and pressures on the currency. The slowdown in the global economy is creating additional challenges. Occupying the northeast corner of the African continent, Egypt is bisected by the highly fertile Nile valley, where most economic activity takes place. Egypt's economy was highly centralized during the rule of former President Gamal Abdel NASSER but opened up considerably under former Presidents Anwar EL-SADAT and Mohamed Hosni MUBARAK. Cairo from 2004 to 2008 aggressively pursued economic reforms to attract foreign investment and facilitate GDP growth. Despite the relatively high levels of economic growth in recent years, living conditions for the average Egyptian remained poor and contributed to public discontent. After unrest erupted in January 2011, the Egyptian Government drastically increased social spending to address public dissatisfaction, but political uncertainty at the same time caused economic growth to slow significantly, reducing the government's revenues. Tourism, manufacturing, and construction are among the hardest hit sectors of the Egyptian economy, and economic growth is likely to remain slow at least through 2012. The government is utilizing foreign exchange reserves to support the Egyptian pound and Egypt may seek a loan from the International Monetary Fund. 4 Thai Trade Center, Cairo ٍ Sherif Yehya Egypt Country Profile Basic Economic Facts Central bank: Central Bank of Egypt (www.cbe.gov.eg) GDP (official exchange US$ 231.9